Peacocks
by Victoria Kathleen Wright
Summary: RamLeela Outtakes. Because if even the great ocean becomes a desert because of its pride, then who are they to let pride get in the way?


**A/N: This will become a story of Ram Leela scenes from the point of views of the characters. Eventually I will order them, but here's one of my favorite scenes first.**

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_Mera naam ishq..._

Ram watched his sleeping beauty from outside the window, on the patio they had shared so many kisses, moments, memories on.

Still, he couldn't possibly bring himself to look at the patio they'd met secretly on, at the peacocks they had disguised their whispering joyous voices with, at the tree in which he'd held her, far from the sights of the world.…

All because he'd been so desperately starved for the sight of Leela for so long. It had barely been a month since they're been forcibly dragged back, but already Ram felt like he'd spent more than a lifetime's worth away from Leela.

Love, he'd learned with Leela, could be beautiful. It could be passionate. It could be fulfilling. It could be salvation. It could be freedom.

But in this world, the world the two lovers belonged to, their love was also dangerous. It was deadly. It was forbidden. It was a grave sin. It was the downfall of them both.

And it was all-consuming, he thought, as he traced his lovely asleep Leela through the fog of her elaborate window. Her cage was beautiful, perhaps, but it was still a cage in which, ironically, only peacocks could roam free. She was trapped and he was trapped, maybe not as literally as her, but nevertheless, he thought, as he touched the Don's _pagdee_ on his head. Still, didn't he stand at her window, just like before?

Except it was nothing like before.

His eyes finally settled on the last thing he'd wanted to see, the thing that had been the catalyst in finally bringing him back to the one person who still bound his walking corpse to this earth: her finger. His head had snapped up a simple centimeter upon hearing his "friends" joke about their Leela _bhabhi_'s newest manicure.

His veins had filled with fire, first at the joy in their tone, and then at Leela's mother for doing something so barbaric to her own child. And then, horribly, a little part of him had been pleased and filled with hope and relief upon hearing that defiant Leela was still at it, and ready to anger the cruelest woman in the entire town to remain faithful to her husband.

Husband. A title he'd never deserved, and certainly not when Leela was his wife.

His eyes caught the horrifically, ironically white bandage covering Leela's finger, remembering how he'd shoved her ring on angrily in his frustration and wondering how much Leela must have treasured that ring in this past month and how easily Dhankor must have cut that beautiful, graceful finger off.

Leela stirred for a second, and in that millisecond, Ram drank up the sight of his beautiful, magnificent, courageous soulmate, ready to leave as soon as he needed to avoid detection.

Leela opened her eyes speedily, her heart pounding in her chest. Her hair was still wet from where she'd fallen in the rain and her finger was absolutely killing her, but no matter. Leela raced out of her bed and unlocked her window-doors in a flash, sprinting out onto the gilded balcony, only stopping at the very edge.

Her breaths came out in whooshes, her eyes were wide open, her legs were ready to topple, but she threw all of her weight onto the columns, eyes desperately searching the darkened gardens for any sight of life other than the hooting peacocks.

She'd _felt _him, the way she'd always been able to. Her Ram had been near, risking everything to be here and check on her as soon he'd heard the news. Or maybe she'd just been dreaming and hallucinating again, the way she'd been sever since she and Ram were separated.

She turned slowly, sadly, just barely keeping the tears from falling down her drained face.

And then she caught sight of the wiped part of her window hiding amidst all the fogged up glass, and she sunk down to her knees, sobbing even as her chest filled with hope.

_Tera naam ishq..._


End file.
